20 Best Educational Apps for Students [2024]

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In this guide, we’re exploring some of the best educational apps out there, from apps made by huge learning establishments to simple educational tools you can use in your day-to-day life as a student.

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Movavi Screen Recorder is an excellent tool for capturing lectures and tutorials, as well as sharing information among a group of students. You can even draw while recording and schedule the recording to take place during an online stream so nothing is missed.

The software works on a PC and Mac computers alike, and also has a free trial version. It’s simple to set up your parameters and record, and there are also a wide variety of choices for file types.

Features:

  • Enhance your educational process with digital media capture
  • Schedule screen recording to capture lectures you can’t attend
  • Capture keystrokes and mouse clicks to create tutorials and presentations
  • Use drawing tools to add annotations and highlight elements with shapes and lines
  • Easily upload to Google Drive or YouTube to share recordings with your class
  • Take screenshots, then add notes and make other necessary edits
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Best apps for education

Khan Academy

Best for: math and science learning

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free

PCMag rating: 4.5 out of 5

Khan Academy is a top-rated service that works on iOS and Android, and is focused on a huge amount of free lessons from this nonprofit organization. It was created by experts and has a particular focus on math and science, though there are some other topics as well.

Students can work their way through the Khan Academy lessons at their own pace, but it is also designed to be a helping hand for teachers, too. It’s one of the best education app tools out there.

Download Khan Academy for iOS

Download Khan Academy for Android

edX

Best for: university-certified learning

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free

G2 rating: 4.5 out of 5, 104 reviews

edX is one of the best apps for education. It partners with universities all over the world and provides many different learning opportunities and courses, as well as boot camps. Many of these are certified, which makes them great for students looking to add a specific skill to their repertoire and boost their resume in the process. 

Courses taught by university lecturers in a variety of subjects are available for anyone to enroll.

Download edX for iOS

Download edX for Android

WolframAlpha

Best for: searching for information

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free

TechRadar rating: 4.5 out of 5

This tool is another of the top educational apps for students, and is a great way to search for “systematic knowledge”. Rather than being a search engine, per se, it uses a variety of tools to provide answers to students’ questions. 

As explained by Wolfram Alpha, results are provided “not by searching the web, but by doing dynamic computations based on a vast collection of built-in data, algorithms and methods.”

Even putting in the name of a historical figure will bring you verified and interesting information that can be used in writing essays.

Download WolframAlpha for iOS

Download WolframAlpha for Android

Duolingo

Best for: learning languages

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free (with premium subscription available)

PCMag rating: 5 out of 5

Duolingo does a great job of gamifying learning languages. It’s one of the best learning apps for students who are learning different languages or even those studying abroad. On top of that, it is one of the educational applications that can help to keep you sharp and boost your brain power, too! Duolingo was made for anyone to be able to learn languages and have fun in the process.

Download Duolingo for iOS

Download Duolingo for Android

Udemy

Best for: industry-specific courses

OS: iOS and Android

Price: varies (some free courses)

PCMag rating: 3.5 out of 5

Udemy is a pretty simple concept. Anyone can teach a course based on what they are knowledgeable about. This can be anything from playing an instrument to coding through to baking. 

They do come with certification that you have finished the course, but honestly these certificates don’t carry too much authority. The point is, you can boost your knowledge and help with any area of learning, making it one of the top 10 educational apps out there today, whether you are in school or not.

Udemy courses can be delivered in a lot of different ways, meaning that you can learn through videos, PDFs, worksheets, and more. It suits a variety of learning styles, and you can learn in your own time.

Download Udemy for iOS

Download Udemy for Android

Evernote

Best for: note-taking across devices

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free (premium up to $10.99 a month)

G2 rating: 4.4 out of 5, 1,975 reviews

Evernote is one of the very best note-taking apps out there, allowing you to sync your notes across devices, and also add tasks and schedules. Students can use Evernote for a variety of different things, including annotating PDFs, syncing with your calendar, and adding notes in the form of photos, screenshots, and more.

It also has a really powerful search function so you can find the notes you are looking for and recall them as needed, for instance if you are revising for an exam.

Download Evernote for iOS

Download Evernote for Android

Popplet

Best for: visualizing ideas

OS: iOS

Price: $2.99

App Store rating: 3.5 out of 5, 29 reviews

Popplet is a fantastic option for visual learners who find school learning apps that are based on text a little bit difficult. It is a note-taking app really, and it allows you to make visual representations, such as brainstorming notes, class notes, and images. You can use Popplet’s “boards” for everything from diagrams and process charts to making notes on a lecture. It’s also a powerful scrapbooking tool.

Download Popplet

Photomath

Best for: learning mathematics

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free (in-app purchases available)

G2 rating: 4.5 out of 5, 2 reviews

Photomath can be thought of as a calculator that also helps you to visualize and understand all of the different elements of mathematics. It can teach you all about equations, and it uses an AI video generator to help explain different mathematical concepts to you.

For learners who have often struggled to grasp things like calculus and other math theories and problems, this seeks to simplify and explain, making it much easier to learn at least a basic level of math.

Download Photomath for iOS

Download Photomath for Android

Quizlet

Best for: practice tests

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free, paid upgrades up to $48 a year

G2 rating: 4.5 out of 5, 282 reviews

This is basically a free source of many different flashcards. You can also make your own flashcards as a method of taking notes and revisiting them later. There is a huge resource already on the app as you can go through the cards made by others, including teachers, who have made them as a teaching resource. 

There are also many different practice tests, a way for you to see where your knowledge is at before going into a real exam.

Download Quizlet for iOS

Download Quizlet for Android

Piazza

Best for: Wiki-style learning

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free for students

G2 rating: 4.2 out of 5, 26 reviews

Piazza is a way to run a Wiki, featuring Q&A features in a simple, single space that course leaders can easily edit. It is a way to create notes, and instructors can even endorse answers to ensure everyone knows it is valid and correct. There are polls, and the option to ask a variety of questions within the Wiki interface. This is a customizable tool that is great for those running courses.

Download Piazza for iOS

Download Piazza for Android

HelloTalk Language Exchange

Best for: learning language by talking

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free with ads

PCMag rating: 3.5 out of 5

HelloTalk is a simple premise. This educational learning app allows people to learn languages by connecting them to other native speakers. It also has a variety of intuitive tools that can assist with the learning process. HelloTalk can automatically underline things like grammar errors, which helps you to use the language better, and as well as text, you can send voice notes and messages. This helps you to learn language in a way you will actually be able to use.

Download HelloTalk for iOS

Download HelloTalk for Android

Memrise

Best for: learning vocabulary

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free with ads

PCMag rating: 4 out of 5

Memrise is very similar to HelloTalk. It is another way to learn languages from real people. It contains tens of thousands of clips that you can use to learn the vocabulary in a useful way. For example, you can learn circumstances and situations, like ordering from a coffee shop or asking for help.

Download Memrise for iOS

Download Memrise for Android

ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard

Best for: interactive whiteboard learning

OS: iOS

Price: free (premium is $24.99/month)

App Store rating: 4.6 out of 5, 11.9K reviews

ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard is an iOS app that lets users see lessons delivered via a virtual whiteboard. Creators can sign up and start making lessons, including a wide variety of media, text, drawings, and of course audio. This means that teachers can show how to do something, whether it is a sum or an analysis of a video or other media form. ShowMe is very popular for distance learning as a result.

Download ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard

DragonBox

Best for: young children

OS: iOS and Android

Price: varies

DragonBox is a developer of different apps for children, helping to teach younger people concepts regarding math, science, and English. This app is one of many that seeks to “gamify” and make children learn through playing and solving puzzles that feel like those they might come across in a game. DragonBox is a good way to build fundamental knowledge for children.

Download apps by DragonBox

NASA

Best for: space lovers

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free

App Store rating: 4.8 out of 5, 63.1K reviews

Google Play rating: 4.5 out of 5, 114K reviews

NASA is one of the greatest innovating organizations in the whole world, and their apps provide loads of information about science and space, totally free of charge. 

This is one of the best apps for education if you are learning about science and the solar system, but it is also just an excellent app for fun and tracking the goings-on in the world of space exploration. There are images from space missions and even live NASA TV all within the app.

Download NASA for iOS

Download NASA for Android

Star Walk 2

Best for: learning astronomy

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free

App Store rating: 4.7 out of 5, 58.5K reviews

Google Play rating: 4.6 out of 5, 447K reviews

Star Walk 2 is a really fun app that will mainly help astronomy students. Though it is not just an educational app for students, it is for anyone who is interested in space and the night sky. It allows you to identify stars, planets, satellites, the ISS, and more. You can see celestial bodies and know what they are, as your camera is used to work out exactly what is visible in the sky above you at any given time.

Download Star Walk 2 for iOS

Download Star Walk 2 for Android

Google Arts & Culture

Best for: art lovers

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free

Product Hunt rating: 3.6 out of 5, 36 reviews

This app is great for a variety of different users and even has street view inbuilt. It is best for art lovers though, with the option to view and explore many famous artworks, find art using colors, and even take VR tours of museums. If you are studying art, this is one of the most popular educational apps you can find.

Download Google Arts & Culture for iOS

Download Google Arts & Culture for Android

Notability

Best for: taking your own notes

OS: iOS

Price: free (offers in-app purchases)

App Store rating: 4.7 out of 5, 26.1K reviews

Notability is wonderful for people who are creative as well as those who like to take detailed notes, which can include text, drawing tools, and images. You can even import web pages and audio, and there are many beautiful templates to make your notes always look great.

Download Notability

SoloLearn

Best for: learning to code

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free (offers in-app purchases)

TopTenReviews rating: 4 out of 5

SoloLearn makes it easy to experiment and play with code, as well as learn the basics. For a free app, it provides a huge amount of information about how Java, HTML, or SWIFT work, and even helps you with databases, such as SQL. You can learn many different coding languages, and the interactive nature of this app makes it much easier to learn when compared to some of the other coding methods. The cool interface shows you the impact of the changes you are making to the code.

Download SoloLearn for iOS

Download SoloLearn for Android

Libby

Best for: learning from eBooks

OS: iOS and Android

Price: free with library membership

App Store rating: 4.8 out of 5, 2.3M reviews

Google Play rating: 4.1 out of 5, 68.5K reviews

With Libby, you can sign up and access thousands of eBooks and audiobooks. It is linked to the US library so you need to ensure that you are a member, and then you can look through the digital catalog, with a specific reader and player within the app. On top of this, it has an option to send the eBooks directly to your reader, such as a Kindle.

Download Libby for iOS

Download Libby for Android

Tips for choosing the top educational apps for students

  • Make sure that an app is aimed at people learning at your level. Most apps will be aimed at certain levels of ability, such as degree-level students.

  • Ensure that an app works on your device and that you have plenty of hard drive space.

  • Always sync and backup any notes that you take on your app, so they are available if anything goes wrong.

  • Check if you are eligible for educational discounts.

Benefits of using learning apps for students

There are many advantages of using learning apps for students, including:

  • Learning apps often facilitate many different learning styles, whether you learn better from watching, reading, or doing.

  • The best education apps for students are often interactive and allow you to ask questions or get feedback.

  • Apps give us a way to learn on-the-go even when we are away from the classroom. 

  • Apps can be an easier way to take notes using audio, photos, and even text recognition.

Best educational apps for students

  1. Khan Academy – best for math and science learning
  2. edX – university-certified learning
  3. WolframAlpha – best for searching for information
  4. Duolingo – best for learning languages
  5. Udemy – industry-specific courses
  6. Evernote – note-taking across devices
  7. Popplet – best for visualizing ideas
  8. Photomath – best for learning mathematics
  9. Quizlet – practice tests
  10. Piazza – wiki-style learning
  11. HelloTalk Language Exchange – best for learning language by talking
  12. Memrise – best for learning vocabulary
  13. ShowMe Interactive Whiteboard – interactive whiteboard learning
  14. DragonBox – best for young children
  15. NASA – best for space lovers
  16. Star Walk – best for learning astronomy
  17. Google Arts & Culture – best for art lovers
  18. Notability – best for taking your own notes
  19. SoloLearn – best for learning to code
  20. Libby – best for learning from eBooks

Summary

Our list of the best learning apps for students gives some brilliant starting points no matter what subject you are studying and trying to master. Wherever you are learning, there is more free and affordable information available now than ever before, making life easier for students globally.

Program

Best for

OS

Math and science learning

iOS and Android

University-certified learning

iOS and Android

Searching for information

iOS and Android

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